La Casona de Antigua (January 2014)

Oasis, indeed. Have you ever arrived at a hotel and realized you’d be plenty happy just staying there, in your room, hardly venturing out at all? This is what I felt upon arrival at our incredibly quiet and enchanting room at La Casona de Antigua.

There was a big, beautiful window to let in the early-morning bird song and breezes. Our beds were comfortable and extra blankets and pillows were provided. (Coming from the mild San Francisco Bay Area, Jacque and I thought the weather was perfect. But everywhere we went, we heard, with a shiver, “Hace frio,” – “It’s cold!” We were flummoxed by this, but it gets HOT in Guatemala so 50-70 degrees Fahrenheit – 10-21 degrees Centigrade – is cold according to the Guatamaltecos and so we saw plenty of sweaters and jackets worn by the locals.

The bathroom was one of the most beautiful I’ve seen.

Called a “bano” or “sanitario” in Guatemala, the lovely extras told me all was designed with love.

Alas, even with hot water advertised, and even though I flipped the “hot water” switch on by the door, we endured most of our showers in cool-to-cold water.